I find the short stories good because you can really come up with anything you want. In personal writing, I find it difficult to write personally about something that I don't/have not experience(d). This doesn't happen in short story writing, which is a guaranteed question in S2.

Also the other nonsense could be anything you like. For example in 2014 'A Tattered Coat' was one title. I wrote a short story about someone dying and I only referenced the tattered coat as a simile for the appearance of this person. However, a descriptive and even personal essay could have suited here.

Choose the type of composition you're strongest at for example I really like doing personal essays as I find them easier to write as I can draw on personal experiences rather than trying to wrack my brain for something imaginative for the short story. I know it's the most common choice but that shouldn't matter if you make yours stand out. Also articles are a good option too if the topic is nice. Either way it all depends on the options given to us in June, the title of the personal essays might not suit you at all and the short story could be perfect for you or vice versa. So it's it's important to know the different structures of the different compositions and to have them practised so you can attempt any of them but again I would stick to what you know best if you can.Hope this helps!

While trying to not sound cocky, my teacher hasn't covered an article or a speech, and I am fairly rounded on the personal essay, short story and descriptive essay, I am finding it hard to decide because i feel like i should focus and prepare a particular choice for the exam, if i want to achieve highly in paper one